To Be Complete Again (Male! Rivals x Ayano)
by Omega Ice
Summary: Ayano is an addict. Addicted to emotions. All she needs to save herself is an upper classman named Taro Yamada. The goal should be simple, eliminate anyone or thing that would be a hindrance to her love. At least, that's what she had in mind. The restoration of her feelings made her weaker than she thought. When does she care about trivial things like bonds?
1. Chapter 1

1.

His childhood friend Taro is nice to a fault. He often gives people the impression that he is not sociable while in truth his kind nature lets him make many friends.

 _Perhaps too kind_ , Osano thought to himself, as he watches Taro apologizing to a girl on the ground-who crashed into him this morning—frantically.

From Taro's widened eyes and paled face, Osano knew his friend was tripped with guilt and worry about the girl.

 _Tsk_ , he felt an irritation rise up in his chest when he stares at the girl. Though it is normally not his place to judge one's politeness (he tend to sound too harsh), but to respond to the person who's talking to you should be basic manners.

Just when he was about to interfere to make sure the girl treat his friend with some respect, he saw her move.

She raises her head, smooth ebony hair slides back past her neck and barely touch her ponytail. Her eyes the color of dusk with some…intense emotion clouded in it.

An unknown shiver hit Osano when he peered into her eyes.

His heart rate fastened, and his breath halted.

 _Ba-dump_

"I'm really, really sorry!"

"No, I sho- I-I-I mean- It's alright. T-thank y-you." Her nervousness showed up on her face clearly, tinting her pale skin a soft pink. It's a perfectly normal and flustered response of a girl who just fell down ungracefully, excluding the fact that it's a complete contrast to the unnerving silence she displayed before.

 _Ba-dump_

The girl accepted Taro's extended hand.

The moment she was pulled up, Taro showers the girl with concern, "Are you sure you are alright?"

 _Ba-dump_

The girl nodded, though "shaking her head up and down wildly like an enthusiastic fan at a metal concert" is a better term.

 _Ba-dump_

Osano doesn't know why he relaxed again at the sight of this, he opened his palm and realized it's wet from cold sweat.

He also releases a breath that he didn't know he was holding.

Just as he does so, he noticed the time from his wristwatch, a desperate shout came out,

"Taro YOU IDIOT! We're LATE!"

Panic overtook Taro's face, the fear of getting late on the first day of school led the two to sprint at breakneck speed towards the school gate, and the incident with this odd girl was quickly forgotten.

2.

The "odd" girl, Ayano Aishi, quivers intensively, overwhelmed with her discovery. _This is what colors look like. What happiness is like described by her mother. What sound is like as it excitedly pounds in her ears._ She placed her hand on her rapidly beating heart.

Joy. Excitement. Comfort. Bliss.

Fear. Anxiety. Sorrow, tears falling.

Despite the tears streaming down her face, she's smiling widely. Creating a haunting image of insanity. Leaning forward to cup her face in her hands, she repeatedly whispered this phrase in her cracked voice,

"Thank you. This is what living feels like. Thank you, thank you, oh thank you..."


	2. Chapter 2

I really like the interactions people wrote about the characters of Yandere Simulator. Something in me wishes to deliver my own version of Ayano. So I did. I don't write stories very often and I've never written romance before.

I'll try my best!

* * *

3.

It was another day of the free period in between class when Osano rejected a popular classmate's invitation to go to an after school party with her.

His classmate walks away with clear rejection written on her face, her group of friends quickly surrounds and cuddles her.

"Najimi-kun is an outcast after all."

"What a brute…don't cry, he's not worth it."

Osano, who continued to sit casually in his corner, couldn't care less about what these people think. Their opinions change like the weather, one moment he'll be the most despicable thing ever existed, and another moment he'll be 'cool' for doing whatever he did. He enjoys what he has now with his close friends, who tolerate and understands him. (He hate to admit Hanako's his precious friend as well.) Plus, he was never good at keeping himself awake when talking to these girls.

After another class, it would be the lunch period. _What should I eat?_ He attempts to distract himself. That and the smooth surface of the desk was the only thing keeping him calm.

"Doesn't he always hang around that lame bookworm? Whats-his-name?"

 _That's the limit_.

He would like to shrug it off like its nothing, but in truth people who talk behind other's back annoys him to no end.

Swatting his orange hair from obstructing his vision, Osano pushed his desk forward, one hand in his pocket, ready to shut these gossiping-

 **THUD**!

The class fell silent.

In the center of attention stood a figure that no one would imagine being there. It was the plain, quiet girl who always sits in the back.

Ayano, was it?

Not a complete outcast but sort of a loner, at the same time nobody recalls her being especially close with anyone either.

She seemed…familiar to Osano.

Her front bangs obscured her expression (another similar gesture), yet there was a sense of menace that put everyone in class on edge. Behind her lies her chair, which was leaning sideways on the ground few feet away from her.

As the center of everyone's attention, she slowly raises her head.

Revealing a look of complete obliviousness.

She turns her head around with a certain daze, as if she's questioning why everyone was staring at her, her half-closed eyelids telling the students around that she just woke up. The signal she sends with her body language made the students of 2-1 feel perhaps they are the strange ones instead.

"When's the next class? I stayed up all night prepping for the quiz today so I didn't sleep well..."

She smiled, like she genuinely causes such a ruckus just to ask about some silly class schedule.

There was another mute period where everyone begins to question themselves.

Ayano Aishi was such a...normal girl, that said, nobody can recall who's her best friend in school, and there's no recollection of her ever raising her voice.

Then again Osano wasn't one to mind much about people's popularity.

The displeasure he feels regarding his classmates mocking his childhood friend was fading away. There was a newfound satisfaction when he saw the blank, confused faces of those who were just making assumptions of him earlier.

Granted this Ayano girl ended this gossip session on accident and not on purpose. Osano still felt gratitude towards her.

Besides, the…aura she exerted when she woke up, it does remind him of someone.

The same feeling that sent shivers up his spine.

Suddenly. he remembers.

She's the girl who bumped into Taro on the first day of school.

4.

'Ayano wasn't so important, it was just a blunder.'

She needs to cement this line of thought in her classmate's minds quickly if she intends to not draw attention to herself.

Ayano surveyed around the classroom, searching for a target to implement the proof of her normalcy on.

Haruki, he's a good choice but he had the tendency to report to the teachers.

Hinata, but she's the social butterfly type so a 'normal' girl wouldn't talk to her.

That leaves Najimi, she only knows him because he's with senpai all the time. Normally, she would have nothing to do with someone who hogs senpai's attention all the time, but the current situation calls for unusual measures.

Mimicking one of the characters from the 15-hour high school drama tv-series she spent the last few days watching, she tilts her head sideways and called out to her target,

"Excuse me, N-Najimi-kun, can you wake me up before the next class starts?"

The nervous stutter was extremely hard to make believable, but she made it by dragging out the diction as she called her classmate's name.

"S-Sure,"

Osano replied, the timidness this girl displayed was weirdly charming to him. To describe this feeling is a hard task, the closest it would be like watching a child trying to speak for the first time. At the same time, the orange headed 'outcast' has no idea why he feels this way. Before he could delve further into his reasoning, someone started snickering.

Osano shot a glare at the laughter's direction instinctively, yet the class could not be stopped.

Koharu Hinata can barely hold her laughter as she points out the comedy of this situation, "Oh dear. Can't believe we actually stopped talking for a whole 5 minutes just to watch some sleepyhead making a mess!"

Another boy quickly chimed in, "Mrs. Fuka would be so proud of us, finally learning to keep quiet in her class."

"She'll be like, 'Oh boy! These rowdy children are finally listening! My holy mission has been fulfilled,'" The class comedian wittily acted out their teacher's antiques in a high pitched voice.

As soon as the joke sink in, the whole class spring into hysterical laughter. While Osano looks back and forth on his classmates' laughing faces confused. The sudden shift in tone caused the class to laugh even more, as if they are trying to forget the abnormal feeling they had earlier.

Ayano sat back to the seat she just picked up, covering her mouth to fake as laughter to fit in.

Suffering through the atrocious plot in that tv show was worth it, after all, cause the atmosphere of the class indicates she succeeded.

This cheap comic relief trick that was overused in the show proved helpful to her.

A part of her wishes for Taro senpai to be with her right now, with him around, she could perhaps feel the same joy her classmate's feeling.

She lays her arm back on the table again, acting like she wishes to sleep again. Inside she berates herself.

Her carelessness almost cost her big. Getting labeled an emotionless freak again would do her no good as senpai would certainly dislike her too. The fear resonates in her chest, fearing that she would go back being an empty shell again.

If that happens, that she ever revert to her empty self, even the fear and dread she feels right now would be gone.

 _Never, she will not lose senpai_.


	3. Chapter 3

Another chapter! I'm used to writing one-shots, but not continuous stories. Would you believe me if I want this story to be a light hearted slice of life story? Hahahahaha me neither.

* * *

5.

Being the longtime childhood friend with an introvert and his spoiled little brother, Osano is well versed in reading the mood and thoughts of those he cared about.

Such as right now, Taro was in a good mood because he just had a pleasant conversation with his new 'friend'.

If only Osano can express his understanding to his friends instead of giving it out as backhanded comments.

"Not that I care, but you and that Kokona girl's getting pretty close. Now I _usually_ don't look into this stuff too much-"

"I know, I know, mother. You're worried, Kokona doesn't like me _that way_ ," Taro sighed, the corners of his mouth rising because he's bemused by his friend's mother-like nagging.

"Rumors spread, dummy!" Osano shakes his fist at his friend in protest. His worries aren't entirely unfounded, Taro is a magnet that always attracts with girls with peculiar personalities. It doesn't help that he's nice to everyone, giving girls the wrong idea. Double trouble occurs when Taro is too nice to even refuse the girl who confessed. Though thanks to his obliviousness, he unintentionally refused many girls by not taking the hint.

It's terrifying, Osano shuddered at the thought of dealing with all this drama.

"Why are you so scared of girls anyway? You got the looks if only you'd smile instead of scowling."

Osano paused, somehow a certain girl with the neat ponytail comes into his mind, he quickly shakes his head from the thought, "I'm not scared! A-Are you stupid? I j-just don't have a-anyone I liked."

He just finds this girl in his class not bad, that's all. The way she could stay clear of people's judgments and gossips. The fact that she unintentionally stopped him from going into a fight with his classmates. He wanted to say his thanks, but the girl was asleep again at the time he prepared himself to say anything to her.

Speaking of the rest of that free period…..Osano felt heat rising up to his cheeks...He ended up staring at her for the rest of the free period.

Black silk layered softly on her desk. Ponytail lifted forward, revealing her delicate neck. Shoulders showing her small frame, her arms acting as the pillow to rest her head on. There's this certain frailness to her, like glass.

 _hey_

Yet her features are not the only thing that intrigues him. No, what was he thinking? He's not interested in her.

 _anybody there?_

It was the vulnerability she displayed while she's asleep, not in a perverted sense, but the way she clenches her fist until her knuckles went white from the pressure she applied. Like she lost something important in her dream.

 _hey_

Osano's definitely not worried about her, he was certain it's just his imagination, perhaps some morbid curiosity that kept him staring-

"Osano! Stop staring into the void!"

6.

Taro Yamada pushes his friend on the shoulder, fretfully.

Osano had not responded to him after he teased him about his aversion to girls. His bashful friend is what those anime fans at school call: tsundere. So Taro expected this tsundere to snap back immediately after he teased him. However, although he did get the expected reaction, Osano simply…doesn't respond after that. He fell into a trance, seemingly buried in his thoughts. There's this glint in his eye, one that Taro had not seen before.

"Did anything happen? Not feeling well?"

"No, no not really. I…don't know actually."

Osano dodged his question. What's more strange is that he is confused himself.

"I see…if there's anything, Hanako and I will always be there for you," Taro wasn't one to interrogate someone, so he let the matter drop.

The rest of the day went on normally, still, there's this alarm ringing in his gut. As if the normal days are over.

* * *

I hope I conveyed Osano's initial attraction with Ayano clearly. It starts with a spark first, then you feel like you are noticing the person you like more and more.

Too bad nothing is normal when your love interest has apathy syndrome plus extremists tendencies.

Sorry if it can't be more fast-paced, if you have any advice, please leave a review below! My grammar is so bad that even after I reviewed it for the fifth time I'm seeing errors.


	4. Chapter 4

7.

The school did not have surveillance cameras in the hallways or classrooms. The only camera Ayano knows of is the headmaster's room and the school gate.

Despite Akademi High's reputation of being a prestigious private school, it's well-known for its shady location. Located right by the Shinto gang's headquarters, a lot of wealthy parents —who earned their money through less conventional means— put their children here. That's why the delinquents in this school run so rampant, their parents' wealth makes the school loosen up its rules. Now, if a student who came from a lesser background made the same mistake…that's another story.

Ayano was neither a delinquent or a queen bee.

She's an average, normal girl.

This begs the question, the reason for her to rethink the school's structure, how does her secret gets found out?

(Hey, I saw you stalking an upperclassmen today)

Where did she get spotted, when, and who?

A quick login to the school's social media page, Sakura net, showed no sign of her secret getting leaked out...or at the very least it's not wide spread. Yet. The overtly pink and clustered web page shows the usual student news. She dug through every selfie, gossip, and meaningless posts.

There's no sign that people find out. Whoever that knew her secret, processes higher information tracking and collecting skills than her

Worst still, Ayano cannot attribute the manner of speech through text, therefore she's unable to find a suspect that knows her secret.

Her thumb lingers on the "block" button on her anonymous Messenger's profile but ultimately decided against it. She can come up with an excuse, yet something tells her her lies will be easily see through in front of this person. Finally, Ayano grits her teeth, and responded,

{Do you have a problem with that?}

8.

{Who are you?}

Their conversation went well.

No threats, just pieces of information delivered. Interesting pieces of information.

(I'm the person nicknamed "Info-chan" at school.)

A redheaded figure doubled down sniggering as "he" typed that.

How easy it is to fool the entire school just with a simple gender suffix. Now he's curious how his fellow monster believed his ruse as well. Though considering her lack of emotions towards anything that's not her crush, she simply would not care.

Father would not understand his fascination with the lives of monsters hidden in society. His sense of justice and years of obsessive pursuit only led his son to develop a morbid curiosity towards the same monstrosity his father vow to destroy.

As he types more lines of commands on his keyboard, images of Ayano Aishi and her infamous mother Ryoba Aishi appeared.

The boy twirled a flock of red hair in his fingertips, light reflecting off his glasses, and hummed lightheartedly to the tragedy he set in motion.

(If you want my help, text me. If you don't care, ignore me.)

Either way, he gets to watch her performance.

* * *

Woo class! Woo Homework (slump down and bang my head on the wall.)

I have no intention to discontinue this fic as I want to write the fic until it ends on a satisfying note, but the update schedule would be _really, really_ wonky.

As always I love discussing Yandere lore and ways people interpret it!

Info-chan (kun) is certainly an interesting character as not much was known about him yet. So I took a massive amount of liberty in writing this character. How do you all feel about him?

Again thanks for _Eclipse130_ and _Navypink_ 's reviews for helping me determine the pace for this setting.


	5. Chapter 5

Finally! Stuck on 11 for so long I swear! I'm so happy I was able to type this out. Stuck for so long...

* * *

9.

On this fine day, Ayano Aishi walks casually by the school gate with her school bag in hand.

Her walking pace cannot be too slow or too fast, her head cannot be too lowered or she'll give off a loner vibe, and she made sure to say good morning to a few random classmates to secure her inclusion to the social hierarchy of the school.

Small friendly smiles, measured compliments, and unconditional nod served her extremely well so far. Everything was under her control. _was_.

Until that Kokona appeared.

Senpai likes that purple haired nuisance around him. He talks about her with his friend Osano all the time. Kokona _this_ , Kokona _that_.

Before, Ayano thought that if she's with senpai, she'll be able to feel emotions. As long as she's able to feel, she has never put much attention on those in relationships with Taro himself.

Oh, how wrong she was.

If senpai gets together with that woman...they may get married after high school, worst of all, outside of school Ayano won't be able to be as close to senpai as she is now.

This is the first time Ayano felt hatred.

Her footsteps became rigid, the searing heat of rage seemed to threaten to leak out her eyes, and the act of faking a smile puts a strain on her entire being.

Before acting even stranger in front of the entire school, Ayano sprinted towards the girls' bathroom stalls, locking herself in a safe space where no one could see her.

Inside, she lets out the scream she's holding, yet restraint and caution let it only came out as a long sigh, "Ha...ah." Curling up into a ball to withhold her whole body from shaking. 

Something, anything, to stop her from strangling that girl who threatens to take her lifeline away. 

For so long emptiness plagues her, now being new to pain, Ayano cannot bear the intensity of hatred in her chest. Sweat rolled off her cheeks, her mind becomes blurred, are emotions supposed to be this strange?

She needs to control this roaring hatred, at the same time she does not want this intoxicating and painful experience to end. Reality is telling her that she simply cannot keep her control whenever Taro Yamada is involved.

 _Is that why she is so afraid of losing control? Why? What does she have to lose except for senpai?_

 _Just...kill...let her disappear...or even better...suffer_.

Leaning against the cold ceramic bathroom walls,

She took out her phone, the smartphone mother bought her before she left with father, and begin to type on her very first phone to her very first contact.

{Tell me everything about Kokona Haruka.} 

10.

"Stop! Ayano is a normal child. Stop telling her about this destiny nonsense!"

 _?_

"Ayano, you can be truly happy now, smile for daddy, will you?"

 _Happy?_

"...You can stop this act now, dear. Your mother- Ryoba has given you permission to feel without this true love myth."

 _But I can't pretend._

"…Why…"

 _Why what?_

"Do you want toys? Or you wish to play with daddy? Anything, please, anything! Just smile for daddy!"

 _Why are you crying?_

"...Please…Please…Please…"

 _Please stop crying. I'll try!_

"!"

 _Does this look like a smile? I hope it does to daddy._

"She smiled! I know you can be **normal**! My daughter is normal!"

 _Am I not normal? Is smiling part of being normal?_

"You are smiling because you're happy, right? Please stop playing pranks on daddy anymore, from now on, you can be your normal self. Smile **whenever you wanted to smile** , you got it?"

 _Ah, he's happy again, but daddy's eyes express sadness instead. He knows I'm pretending._

 _Pity. I pity daddy, though I don't know why._

 _Oh, welcome back, mother. But this means daddy won't talk to me anymore…_

"Ayano dear, one day you will meet _the one_ , he will make you feel. He will be your entire world, and when that time comes, you can be complete again."

… _If that's the only way, mother, I guess it can't be helped. But right now, not feeling anything is fine._

11.

Taro's sick today.

Usually, Osano wakes up early just so he can wake up in time as well. Can't leave his bed with 30 minutes of constant calling on his phone, almost routinely late. Osano still remembers when he knocked on Taro's door today to see how bad his sickness was, and the reply he got from Hanako is, "Wow, Osano, checking on big brother so diligently. You're so motherly!"

 _I swear this kid gets more annoying ever since the day I met him. You asked for it!_

-Commence a beautiful scene of friendship, aka the fist of love right on Hanako's head.-

Leaving a crouching Hanako Yamada behind, who's holding his head in pain from the wrath his choice of words brought him, Osano decided to just go to school early. The school gates will be open anyway, plus the quietness in the morning is quite welcomed.

A familiar presence caught his attention.

Those days he often repeatedly thinks of her.

Ayano Aishi, a normal girl who was often seen as 'plain' or 'boring' by her peers.

However, the more he looks at her, he felt that she's special to him. Sometimes when he caught a glimpse of her obsidian hair pass by the hallway, his eyes cannot help but follow her.

Today her footsteps seemed more irregular, like untuned instrument; Her eyes, for the first time, seem to fixate on something; Her lips pressed into a thin line, a new angle he had not seen before.

Ayano, someone who always seems to be calm and collected, had such passion hidden in her?

When she leaves his line of sight, Osano felt this...emotion deep down. They are classmates, he can call out to her, right?

Osano felt this frustration, "Well…It's not like I wish to greet her,"  
He muttered disappointedly.

* * *

Ayano thinking about elimination. Poor Osano let his curiosity run wild.  
The way I write characters always trap them in their own world, therefore I decided to open up a new short story collection that focuses **directly** on Ayano's interaction with male rivals & more! Prompts & request welcomed, but I kinda pick and choose...Also, don't trust my writing. Click on my profile pic to go see it!


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